1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to connectors, and especially to a card connector for electrically connecting an electrical card to an electrical device.
2. Description of the Related Art
Electrical card connectors are usually provided with detect switches for write-protect or full-insertion detection. U.S. patent application Publication Ser. No. 2001/0053622 published on Dec. 20, 2001 disclosed an electrical card connector. The card connector comprises a frame defining a card receptacle portion, a metallic cover member covering the frame and a switch portion for identifying write inhibit for an IC Card. The switch portion includes a contact plate with V-shaped projecting portion extending into the receptacle portion. During insertion of an IC card, the contact plate is pushed outwardly to electrically connect with a side plate portion of the cover. Since the switch portion is constituted by utilizing the side plate portion of the cover member. It is not necessary to dispose two contact plates and thus permitting the reduction in thickness of the card connector. However, an electrically card connector usually has both write-protect and full-insertion switches.
JP Patent Application Publication No. 2001/135383 published on May 18, 2001 disclosed an electrical card connector. The electrical card connector comprises a base, a write-protect switch contact arranged in a longitudinal side wall of the housing, a U-shaped full-insertion switch contact mounted in a rear wall of the housing, and a spring contact also mounted in the longitudinal side wall of the housing and adjacent to the write-protect switch contact. The write-protect switch contact connects with the spring contact. An electrical card is inserted and pushes the write-protect switch contact to move laterally and disconnect with the spring contact. The electrical card is full inserted and pushes the full-insertion switch to connect with a rear portion of the spring contact. However, the write-protect switch contact and the spring contact enlarge the width of the longitudinal side wall and the full-insertion switch contact enlarges the dimension of the rear wall. A card connector with switch contacts with a compact arrangement is desired.
An object of the present invention is to provide an electrical card connector with switch contacts in a compact arrangement.
An electrical card connector of the present invention comprises an insulative housing, a plurality of terminals received in the housing, a shell shielding the housing, and a first and a second switch contacts for write-protect and full insertion detection for an electrical card. The housing includes a pair of side walls and a receptacle portion. One of the side walls defines a first and a second slits for respectively receiving the first and the second switch contacts. The shell has a generally planar top wall and a pad extending downwardly from one side of the top wall. The first and the second switch contacts respectively include a first and a second spring portions extending into the receptacle portion of the housing. An electrical card is inserted into the receptacle portion and successively pushing the first and the second spring portion outwardly to electrically connect with the pad of the shell.